News

Find out what members of CEN are up to

Link to our group stories page, or read the latest edition of our magazine, Speakeasy.

Irish Heritage Centre - Consultation

Coventry Irish Society is in the process of consulting the local community with regards to establishing an Irish Heritage Centre in the city. Without the input of the Irish community (first, second, third generation; partners or friends of Irish people; Irish businesses...) and others from all communities and cultural groups, this Centre will not be possible so please take a few minutes to complete our online survey about what you would like to see happen in Coventry.

Just click  here to take part.

Willenhall Cultural Celebration

An evening of fun hosted by Willenhall Tenants and Residents, Fri 20th June. Find out more here.

New members for Stoke Culture Group...?

...some baby rabbits! Free to a good home, contact Brinder on 024 7654 0021.

Coventry Refugee Week

Coventry Refugee Week, part of the month-long Positive Images festival, takes place from 14-21st June. Find out what's happening in Coventry here.

The Coventry Partnership have produced a leaflet which 'busts' some of the myths around asylum seekers, refugees and economic migrants. You can download it  here.

New leader for Coventry Partnership

The chair of the Coventry Partnership rotates each year, and the leader of the City Council, Ken Taylor, has been named as this year's chair. He replaces Les Ratcliffe, Community Relations Manager at Jaguar and Land Rover. Read more about it  here.

Want to know more about the Coventry Partnership? You can read more here.

My Neighbourhood

Find out about what's really happening where you live! This police website gives crime statistics for your area, and shows how you can make your voice heard to improve community safety where you are. Click  here to visit it.

Re-launch of Anti-social Behaviour reporting line

'It's your call' has been relaunched with a local Coventry number: 024 7683 1300

It has been redesigned to make it easier for people to report the different types of ASB. From litter in the street, to graffiti and vandalism, nuisance neighbours to underage drinking, people can now report it to It's Your Call.

Members of CEN who attended last October's monthly meeting were involved in a mini-consultation on a leaflet for residents explaining what to do if you experience anti-social behaviour. This has now been sent out to every house in the city.

Community's comments change city's strategy

The Coventry Partnership has expressed thanks to the many members of CEN who gave up their time to comment on the priorities and objectives in Coventry’s twenty year strategy. ‘All comments made were taken on board, and there have been some major changes to the document as a result’, says June Morley from the Coventry Partnership. ‘Where no change has been made, it is either because the issue raised was already in the strategy, or because it will be contained in the delivery plans that sit under this strategy. No comment has been ignored’. Consultations were also held with other groups including CEMAP, CVSC, NDC and individual residents.

Thanks to CEN members’ comments on crime, large parts of the Community Safety theme have been rewritten. Several new priorities have been added, including preventing crime by (amongst other means) working with families and individuals who cause concern in neighbourhoods, working with local communities to reduce the fear of crime and improving the support given to victims of crime. In other themes, new priorities include creating appropriate jobs to retain graduates, improving flooding disaster management and encouraging good nutrition. The commitment to supporting older people to live independently has been strengthened.

CEN members had an opportunity to ask questions about the amendments at our Saturday conference in March. To find out exactly what has happened to your comment view the full feedback document here. 

Spring Programme of CEN Events

On the 19th January we held our first event of 2008.  This workshop gave our members the chance to influence the priorities of the Coventry Partnership's Sustainable Communities Strategy.  We have a further three events coming up in March 2008, to find out more, see our events page.

Virtual Gallery at the Herbert

Ever wondered what's in the Herbert Gallery? Or interested in improving your IT or photography skills? The Herbert Gallery is recruiting groups from across Coventry for their 'Virtual Gallery' project, which aims to encourage participation and access to their collections, and increase participants' ICT and creative skills.

You will have the opportunity to handle objects from the Herbert's collection, photograph them, learn how to digitally enhance your photos and to work on web-based programmes to create your own 'online gallery' using the latest web-building technology. The workshops are free.

If you or your group is interested, please contact Aysha.Afridi@coventry.gov.uk, 024 7678 5167.

Link to the  Herbert Gallery

Cracking Down in Foleshill

Operation Blue Ribbon brings together over 20 agencies including the police, fire service and city council to tackle specific issues raised by residents including anti-social behaviour, criminal damage, environmental matters and parking problems, in a specific area.

The initiative was launched with a crackdown day in Foleshill on 18 May 2007 and the partners will continue to visit the area on random days in the next few weeks and months. The hope is that community groups, businesses and residents in the area can influence what happens on future crackdowns.

Here is just a taster of what happened in Foleshill:

Community groups can also be involved, and if you would like to influence future crackdown days, contact your Neighbourhood Warden or phone 024 7678 5910.

Our Website

CEN's website is for members of the network and the community of Coventry. It features news of community groups transforming their neighbourhoods, the latest from the Coventry Partnership via our community reps, plus:

This website is for you! Advertise your events, share your learning, ask for help from other groups or make your voice heard. If you have a story or event you would like us to put on the website, contact us!

Stories of Success

CEN has produced a booklet highlighting the stories of ordinary people in Coventry who have brought about change in their community. Find out how community groups achieved their success. Be inspired and learn at the same time! 

You can read the individual stories here. You can order a booklet by contacting CEN.